After Midnight
by Lastsyns
Summary: After Midnight the Doctor needs help sleeping.


It had been a week since the diamond planet Midnight and the Doctor was still awake. He hadn't slept since the night before they went to the Library. The library had been hard on both of them. They had each lost a spouse that day. Donna's husband had been apart of a simulation by the computer, while his wife he hadn't even met yet. He had wanted to go somewhere fun after the library, but Donna insisted that they go somewhere relaxing instead. Midnight was suppose to be the perfect compromise for them. Donna could rest and be pampered at the leisure palace while he rode the bus to the Diamond waterfall. In the end though, it had turned out to be anything but peaceful. He had barely gotten off the bus alive and they had left shortly after he had finished explaining to Donna what had happened.

He tried to tell the owners of the Leisure Palace to take their business elsewhere but they wouldn't listen to him. They insisted that the bus breaking down was a one time only accident and nothing could live in the extonic sunlight. They even offered him a free nights stay in compensation for his time stuck on the bus. He immediately declined it. As they headed back to the TARDIS he had seen others from the bus and just like before they refused to meet his eye. He had seen the worst humanity had to offer from them and his love for humans had been crushed. He knew that he would find it again in time, he just had to recover first.

Yet a week later he still couldn't bring himself to sleep. He knew that once he closed his eyes he would relive that horrible event and he didn't want to feel the helplessness again. He didn't want to hear his voice telling them to kill him as he was paralyzed by the thing that had invaded his mind. So instead, he walked around the controls slowly pressing buttons and pulling levers, as he planned for their next adventure. His eyes closed for just a second as he checked the screen, but just as quickly he forced them back open. Donna watched him in concern from the hallway. His clothes were wrinkled, buttoned wrong so that they were also skewed. His tie was loose and not tucked in. He needed to shave and his hair looked like it hadn't been touched in a few days.

"Doctor," she called. He turned to look at her and she noticed how pale he was with bags beneath his eyes. "When is the last time you slept," she asked concern.

"I don't need to sleep," he replied immediately. For a brief second she saw the flash of fear in his eyes, before he turned back to the controls. His head fell to the side again and the TARDIS shook violently tossing them both to the ground. Donna stood up quickly. She watched on as the Doctor slowly crawled to his knees and than forced himself to his feet. She noticed then that his shoes were untied and he was missing a sock.

"Oi, Spaceman." she yelled at him. She heard the familiar noise of the TARDIS landing. Once they were safely on the ground, she marched over to the Doctor and hit him hard in the arm.

"What was that for," he growled angrily.

"You need sleep before you get us both killed," Donna snipped back at him.

He suddenly sounded sad and childlike. "I don't need to sleep," he whimpered.

"Come on," Donna told him gently. She took his elbow in her hand, dragging him down the hallway with her. She opened his bedroom door and led him to his bed. She pushed him down on it, before pulling off his shoes and remaining sock. She undid his tie, slipping it out from around his neck. She started to undo the buttons on his shirt and he slapped her hand away.

"You do it than." He just stared at her, until she reached for them again. He sighed and unbuttoned his shirt. She helped him slip it off, leaving his undershirt on. "Now the belt," She scolded.

"Do you want to see me naked, Donna," he asked with a cheeky grin. She threw a pair of pajama trousers at him. He caught them with ease. His face fell though as he recognized them as the same ones that Rose had changed him into after he regenerated. He stood up and walked to the closet.

"Turn your back," he told Donna suddenly feeling slightly embarrassed. He usually had no problem being naked in front of someone and had a few naked escape stories of his own, not that he would ever tell the Captain. One of them had even been with Donna. Right now though, being naked in front of Donna seemed like a punishment. She sighed at him before turning her back to him, looking at his wall. Thankful, he quickly changed into another pair of trousers and pulled on a clean shirt. With her back still turned he took the opportunity to leave the room. He practically ran as he headed back towards the control room.

"No, you don't spaceman," Donna exclaimed as she caught up to him. She grabbed his arm and held on to him tightly as she led him back into his room and back to his bed. She pulled back the covers, then pushed him onto the bed again. He sat there. She sighed. "You need to sleep."

"Please, don't make me sleep," he sounded so afraid, that it angered her and broke her heart at the same time. She gently, smoothed back his hair.

"I'll stay with you. Just wait here." She went to her room. Once there she changed into her night shirt and a pair of shorts. When she came back to his room, she was surprised to see him still sitting there, looking lost. She went to the other side of the bed, pulled back the covers and laid down.

"Come on spaceman." He finally turned, laying stiffly down on the bed. Donna pulled the covers over both of them. He lay there breathing quickly as the fear of sleeping rose within him. She moved closer to him, wrapping her arm around him from behind. He surprised her by turning over so that he was facing her. He hid his face from her as he moved his arms to hold her back. It wasn't long after that, she felt him shudder and heard him quietly start to weep. All the anger gone, she stroked his hair. She just held him, feeling his tears soak into her shirt as he sobbed. Before his crying stopped, his breathing began to even out and she held him long after he had fallen asleep.

She fell asleep at one point. She was awoken to him thrashing on the bed, crying for River to help him. He kept pleading with her to stop them from throwing him off the bus. He was shaking so violently, she was afraid he was going to hurt himself in his sleep.

"Doctor," she called out, not wanting to touch him and possibly make the dream worse. "Doctor," she called again. He opened his eyes a crack. Confused eyes looked up at her, before he remembered why she was in his bed. "You were having a nightmare," She informed him softly. He shifted on the bed closer to her, letting her wrap her arms around him again. He lay awake, fighting off sleep, until his need for sleep won and he drifted off once more.

When she woke the next day, he was all ready gone from the room. She walked quickly back to her room, showered and got dressed for the day. Grabbing an apple from the kitchen she walked to the control room to find him, fully dressed. He was dressed with his suit buttoned correctly. His hair had been washed and he shaved. Over all he looked better, though he still had bags beneath his eyes. He smiled at her as she entered the room. He rushed to the door grabbing his coat on the way out. "Shan Shen, the Oriental planet," he began happily.


End file.
